W4

[Ach67]

My husband has proper withholdings but my job only withheld $200. Out of 10k. We file jointly and when I added my w2, we ended up owing around $600.00. Should I change mine to single and leave the rest blank so that they take out more? I may work 2 days one week, 4 the next then 1 etc. He is the main breadwinner so I don't really want to change his.

[AskTxBrenda]

I know filling out the W-4 can be confusing. I hope this helps. Since he is the main income, he needs to treat your income into the calculation, so in total you two are taking enough out. 

By placing a “0” on line 5, you are indicating that you want the most amount of tax taken out of your pay each pay period. If you wish to claim 1 for yourself instead, then less tax is taken out of your pay each pay period.

If you have 2 or more jobs -

When filling out your W-4 forms, there are a few tips to keep in mind: For the job where you make the most money, claim all of the allowances you normally would on the W-4 form. For any other job that you have (your second job for example) claim zero.

If you want to owe the least amount when filing your taxes, you will claim 0 on the W-4, so the job will withhold at a higher rate. This is important especially if you have more than 1 job.

If you didn't account for each job across your W-4s, you may not have withheld enough, so your tax refund could be less than expected.

Calculator - https://apps.irs.gov/app/tax-withholding-estimator

Instructions - https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/fw4.pdf

[ericbastian]

Thank you for the question! To get correct withholdings please start with the TurboTax W-4 Calculator for 2023. The link is below.

https://turbotax.intuit.com/tax-tools/calculators/w4

You will need to submit a new W-4 to your employer(s) now for 2023, and then also revisit the W-4 calculator at the end of December, so you will be withholding the correct amounts for 2024 also.

Have a great day!

[Esther M]

Dear Ach67,

Sorry that you ended up owing $600 after you added your W2. It's never advisable to give false information so do not change your W4 to single. Select Married Filing Jointly and complete Step 2 and check the box to indicate that you and your husband have jobs. Go ahead and complete Steps 3 and 4, if applicable. On Step 4(c) you may enter an additional withholding amount to be taken from your paycheck every pay period. Make sure this is an amount that would be comfortable for you to deduct from each paycheck.

You may also use the Turbo Tax Withholding Tax estimator to arrive at the correct withholding.

W-4 Calculator 

If you follow the above instructions, it's unlikely that you will end up owing again. 

[MelodyB]

I recommend you take a look at our W-4 Calculator.  People find it very helpful to help them estimate what they should withhold.  The new W-4 isn't as helpful as it used to be when we claimed exemptions.   If you anticipate your income to be about the same in 2023 then you could take that $600 you owed in 2022 and divide that amount by the number of paychecks there are left in 2023 and have that additional amount withheld on your W-4.

https://turbotax.intuit.com/tax-tools/calculators/w4/

[Ach67]

Using the calculator is difficult because my husband frequently does overtime and at times the company decides not to allow OT.

He gets paid every 2 weeks.  My pay every week but I sometimes wait 2 or 3 weeks to turn in my hours in cases where I only worked one or two days a week (I now know that they do not like that) so I may go a week or two wit out a check.  Also I  don't work June, July and 1/2 of August and have no pay until mid to late August.  What's the highest percent they'll withhold if I just claim "0" exemptions on my W4?  I'm just looking fir the easiest way to correct my W4. My husband's seems to be OK (I guess).

[AskTxBrenda]

Putting 0 is the highest amount, but if you need more taken out then - Simply add an additional amount on Line 4(c) for "extra withholding." That will increase your income tax withholding, reduce the amount of your paycheck and either jack up your refund or reduce any amount of tax you owe when you file your tax return.